Redux
by Dawn of a New Eclipse
Summary: You know the story of Sam and Dean, but what about what happened when they weren't around. The story that was hidden in the shadows. The story that hasn't been told...until now...
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1- Prequel**

"Stay have a drinks with us."

"Yeah you never want to hang out with us anymore.

"Kathleen Rose turned to her friends as they left the movie theater put out that once again she would have to decline their invitation for drinks. "I can't," she regrettably had to say. "I have a paper due in an hour and I've gotten as far as the cover page. Rain check?"

"Fine," Joss said giving her a past this one time since the semester was coming to an end and deadlines couldn't be missed, "but the next time we go for drinks you're coming and we're not going to stop drinking until you find someone hot enough to make out with and possibly even take home."

"Deal," Kayla agreed with a smile and laugh saying a final farewell to her friends she walked to her car unaware that she was being followed until she was alone and in the dark parking lot across the street from the movie theater where she had parked her car under a busted street lamp and heard the footsteps. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up and she got a chilling feeling that ran through her spin as she reached inside of her purse for her keys quickening her steps.

Her purser footsteps changed to match hers which prompted her to breakout into a sprint once she retrieved her keys from her purse and she didn't stop until she reached her car. She looked over her shoulder once she was there but didn't see whoever had been pursuing her and didn't see them anywhere in the area.

She took a deep breath settling her racing heart thinking her imagination was getting the better of her before opening her car door and getting in. She drove back to her apartment parking her car in front of her apartment building under a working a street lamp this time. She took the three flights upstairs up to her and entered apartment 3c.

She locked the door behind her sitting her purse on the small circular dinette table in the small space between the kitchen and the living room in between the couch and the kitchen counter and walked into her room. Removing her jacket, she sat it on the bed and walked into the bathroom turning on the shower. She removed her clothes and makeup as then showered; shampooing and conditioning her hair in the process before cutting off the shower and wrapping a towel around both her hair and and body before stepping out.

She wrung the water out of her hair using the towel as she walked back into the bedroom and over to the dresser draw near the north wall she pulled out a set of underwear from the top draw and a top from the bottom and dropped her towel and got dressed when the lights leading to the living room flickered three times in a rapid session before it returned to shining brightly causing Kathleen to chalk it up to faulty wiring. She finished getting dressed walking back into the bathroom pulling out her comb and blow dryer from the top draw. She began to comb out her hair plugging in the blow dryer in the outlet under the mirror afterwards. She got to work on drying it.

She was halfway through when the light in the bathroom went out causing her to walk over to switched. She flicked it on and off a few times and when nothing happened she walked out of the bathroom, left the bedroom, and into the kitchen to check the circuit on the wall by the stove but none of the switches were switched off and the buildings all surrounding her apartment all still had power. She figured that it must have been wiring in her apartment that what was the cause of her power failure and decided to call for help when the lights suddenly came back on.

She hit the end button and looked up she exhaled looking up and came face to face with her roommate who she hadn't even heard come in. "Kate? I thought you were going to be out of town for a week." When she did answer, Kayla took a few tentative steps towards her. "Kate?" She stopped about a few feet away from her and saw blood slowly start to pour from her mouth before she was dropped face first into the floor.

A thin brunette Kayla recognized as Tiffany from her psych class stood behind her with a knife that contained Kate's blood on it. Kayla stared down at Kate's body terrified and with tears gathering in her eyes. She dropped the phone and ran for the door but was yanked back by her hair, thrown and then pinned to the wall while Tiffany pulled the knife to her throat.

"Now that I have you're attention." She slammed her into the wall causing her head to bounce off it and her eyes sight was temporarily blurred. "Why don't you tell me where John is just and maybe I'll spare your life."

"I don't know. I swear." She pushed the knife closer to her neck drawing blood. "Even If I did, I wouldn't tell you."

"I know." She said beginning to twirl the tip of her knife to her neck. "You're loyal to John." She stepped back and Kayla held her neck taking deep breaths. "You wouldn't give him up no matter what I do to you. Fortunately for me," she turned her back walking over to Kate and wiping the blood of the knife onto her shirt. Kayla took the opportunity to slowly move towards her purse on the table. "John feels the same. He'll come running once he here's your in trouble."

"He won't. I made sure of it." She stopped when she turned to look over her shoulder at her from her squat position keeping her hands stalled behind her on the table. "Made him promise me not to come. So you can do whatever you want to me but you won't get what your want."

"Perhaps," she said nonchalantly standing. "But, I'm guessing he'll be all too happy to break that promise once he hears how much you're suffering and he'll come riding in on his white horse to save you. Of course" she twirled the knife in her direction as she approached her. "You could just save yourself and tell me where he is."

"Or I don't," she said standing as still as she possible could to prevent Tiffany to see what she was doing behind her back. "And you kill me and when John finds you and he will find you he'll kill you and he'll make it as painful and slow as he possibly can and right before you pass out from the pain because you can't take anymore he'll send you back to that dark fiery pit you crawled out of."

"Or," she reached out and grabbing her by her neck constricting her airway and lifting her off the ground. "I could just kill you now and leave pieces of you for him to find."

Kathleen jammed a syringe full holy water into her neck. She dropped her as she went to her knees screaming and Kathleen kicked her in the face sending her into the back of the couch. The front door was kicked in and three men walked in. She grabbed the lighter out of her purse and stood on the table holding the lighter up to the sprinkler system that ran through the building that John helped convert into holy water.

She watched as their skins burned and they cried out in dropping to their knees. She jumped off the table stepping around Tiffany. She walked to her closet and punched into a code to the safe she kept in the bottom of the closet. She pulled out a gun, a handful of cash, and a couple of books along with a prepaid cell phone.

She shut the safe and grabbed the duffle bag that sat next to it.. She walked into the living room just as the system shut off stepping over their bodies. She stopped at the door hitting play on the stereo. Latin chants filled the small apartment as she left. She slipped out of the back door and slid in with the crowd that was being evacuated out of the building.

Using the commotion to slip away unseen, she walked to her car placing her bag in the trunk looking around to make sure she went unnoticed. She got into the car and headed for the highway. She didn't stop until she reached the closest safe house three hours away.

The home of a hunter John introduced her to when he'd came looking for her help the end of freshman year. Sam had been accepted to Stanford that same year and he was hell bent on leaving. John expressed his concerned about him being on his own but Kathleen knew that it just went beyond a father's worry for his son.

He had heard some rumors about Sam one's that had him alarmed and he needed someone to keep an eye on him. He explained after she had pressured him. He said that he couldn't do it himself and it wasn't something he wanted to worry Dean with and that she was the only one he could trust with it.

Naturally, she understood his concerned. If any of what was said were true and word were to get out it would put Sam in danger and so she agreed to keep an eye out on him and report anything that she would considering alarming back to him. She was relieved when she didn't find anything to report back to him. He had formed a normal life with friends, and even girl friend. Whom she had met on a few occasions and had thoroughly liked. She didn't find anything out of the ordinary to report back to him and was relieved. It also led her to believe that the rumblings he had heard about same where just that. But John was convinced that it was more than that just mere rumors, so she did some digging of her own.

What she found out was both surprising and startling. Though she didn't know what any of it meant for Sam, she was determined to find out everything that she could, both with John and her own. She tracked down leads and spent all her free times going over the omens and crop failures they way John had taught her. They were on to something, which was why they were now being hunted and why she needed to get to somewhere safe.

"Thank you for letting me stay here," Kathleen said to Mrs. Whitefield after she had shower and changed. She followed her into the kitchen. "I promise I'll only be here for a couples few days."

"You can stay as long as you need to." She said with a warm smile and Kathleen smiled back until she turned to face the front and her smile dropped. "You called him." She said accusatory to Mrs. Whitmore.

"He had a right to know."

"It's not Amelia's fault."

"No it's yours." Mrs. Whitefield took that as her opportunity to slip away so they can hash out their problems alone. "What part of you and I can't be anywhere near each other didn't you understand. What if they followed you here? Or followed me?"

"This isn't my first day on the job Katie," John said affronted and a little insulted. "And if you had even the slightest suspicion that they were following you you wouldn't have come here." She wouldn't have came if she didn't know she got away clean. She wouldn't risk dragging anyone else into their problems and he knew that.

"And it doesn't mean that we're suddenly safe either. They're not going to stop looking."

"I know," he leans against the chair pushed out in front of him at the dining table." It's why I bailed out of my last out of the job in Jericho. They're close."

"Don't worry," She knew what he was getting at. "I already called Bobby just in case our plan went south and him that I had some time off from school coming up and I was going to come visit for a few days to make sure he was feeding himself more the whiskey and hadn't burn down the place." She popped the top to the beer she pulled out of the fridge. "He's expecting me in a few days." she said when she noticed the look of concern that crossed his face. "You can wipe that look off your face. I didn't tell him what we were up to. He'd hate you more than he already does." She took a sip from her beer.

"He'd have a right to." He uncrossed his arms and lean back glancing at her from the corner of his eyes. "I should have never dragged you into this."

" _You_ didn't." She turned to him. She couldn't stress to him enough that he wasn't the reason she was in the mess she was with him. "I was apart of this long before you came and ask for my help. And it's not like you had to twist my arm. He took something from me too. And I want to see this son of bitch dead as much as you do. But we have to play this smart. No more acting solely based on emotion, we can't afford to slip up now."

"I know" He said then took a long drag of his drink. As she watched him drain his glass, another thought occurred to her that she was sure he had yet to consider.

"You know he's going to come looking for you," he paused mid drink and looked her watching as she sat down her glass, "Dean, and he's not going to stop until he does."

"I already took care of it."

"Care to share with the rest of the class 'cause aside for cuffing him to the door of the impala and dropping it down a rabbit hole I don't see it working."

"I sent him on a job. I thought it'd buy me to put some time until I figured out what to do."

"You were suppose to be on the other side of the country. Isn't that what we both agreed on that it was the only way for you to keep them both safe."

"Yeah, and who's going to keep you safe. "

"That's for me to worry about, your focus has to be on Sam and Dean. They're not aware of the situation and you already know how I feel about that so I won't repeat it but I will say it's a mistake not to at least tell Dean. He should know what he's up against so he can prepare himself."

"I've prepared him enough. I need him away from all of this."

"Then you know what you have to do to make sure that happens. He can't be around you right now. It's not safe. Neither can I. Tonight is perfect example of that. They're not going to stop coming for you, and they nearly used me to do it. What's to say that won't do the exact same thing with Dean. If you want to keep us safe then you know what you have to do." She placed a hand on his arm, "I'll be okay. We both will. Like you said, you've prepared us enough. You just have to trust that." When she saw she got through to him walked away.

"Hey," she stopped turned around. "I'm sorry about Kate. I know how close you were."

"Yeah," she smiled grimly. "Me too."

* * *

"I packed you some leftovers to take with you." Mrs. Whitfield said handing Kathleen a handful of Tupperware after she'd put her things in the car a few days later. "I know Bobby doesn't carry more than beer and a box of old baking soda in the back of the refrigerator." John came out of the house with his bags and Kathleen watched as he loaded is truck. She turned back to Mrs. Whitfield"How his liver managed to last this long is beyond me? You be careful now you here."

"Yes, ma'am."

"And know that my door is always opened if you need it." She said and Kathleen smiled at her gratefully. "And make sure to keep this one," she thumbed her finger in John's direction as he walked over, "out of trouble."

"I will."

John leaned down to hug the slightly older women, "thanks for care of her."

She hugged him back patting his back before turning to hug Kathleen and making her way back inside.

"You all you set?" John asked and she turned to her baby blue mercury comet and sat the Tupperware inside before turning back to John.

"If that's your way of asking if I called Bobby that I'd be home earlier than expected and no he doesn't suspect a thing but I have to tell him something about what happened to Kate before he finds it out for someone else."

"Stick to the truth as much as you can. The old man's a hound dog when it comes to spotting a con, and remember,"

"I know. No hunting until I get the all clear from you. And I'll make sure to check in with the local police about Kate so I don't become a suspect and I'll keep off any traceable phone lines and keep all calls under sixty seconds if I need to reach you."

"Don't need to reach me."

"I'll try not to, but I don't know how well that will work. I have that Winchester jean. The one that almost guarantees that trouble will follow. Or maybe that's because I'm always following a Winchester."

"It's part of the charm."

"Keep telling yourself that," she back up and got in the car. John closed the door behind her and she started the car after given John a final look and drove off.


	2. Prequel II

**Chapter 2**

Her initial instinct was Bobby but she knew John was right. She had to deal with the matter of Kate before she could unless she wanted to be become a person of interest in her death. She knew they would be out looking for her to question her about the events that lead up to it and she had seemingly disappeared without a trace. It wasn't long before she would look like a co-conspirator if not like the killer and fighting off a murder charge was something she couldn't afford to do, enlight of what's been happening.

So she went back to face any questions or accusations that might get thrown against her stopping at the local P.D office with the clothes she had taken with her when she left unwashed. She sat down with the sheriff to answer any questions he might have having came up with a story she knew that would not only be believable but would fit the evidence. She waited for him to speak as he looked over the statement she had given to one of the deputies after another took her bag to process it.

"So, Miss. Rose," he spoke after twenty odd minutes of sitting in silence. "Why don't you tell me your where about of the night off October 25 and what you can recall from that evening."

"Uh yeah, I went to a late movie with some friends."

He checked his notes, "Jocelyn Turner and Kayla Smith."

"Yes."

"And what movie did you see?"

"Saw II"

"And whose idea was?"

"Joss's, she's into those kind of movies."

"And what about you?"

"I'm more of an action girl. You know anything with fast cars and explosions"

"So why did you go if it wasn't something you preferred to see?"

"It was Josh's idea. She thought that a scary movie would be the perfect place to pick up guys. Girls our age hates that kind of stuff and she'd thought it'd be a lot of single guys there with there friends. I had a psych paper due so I thought hanging out with my friends and writing a movie review pointing out psychological disorders would be killing two birds with one stone."

"You share that same course with Ms. Smith is that correct?"

"Yes."

"So where'd you go after?"

"Kayla and Joss wanted to get drinks but like I said I had two papers due so I went home."

"And what did you see when you got there?"

"Nothing, I was alone. Kate was out of town and wasn't suppose to be back for a few more days."

"So what did you do next?"

"I got undress and took a shower, washed my hair. Got out and plugged in my dryer and all the lights when out. So i got dressed and went to check it out and the power was out throughout my apartment just mine and so was the phone so I went to check the circuit and it tripped so I pushed the button and the lights turned on."

"And where was Kate?"

"She was standing behind me when I turned around. I jumped because like I said I hadn't expected to see her and she looked scared. So I approached her and that's when I saw her."

"Who?"

"Tiffany, she was standing behind with a knife and before I had a chance to react she had cut her throat."

"And what did you do?"

"I ran, but she grabbed me by my neck." She showed him the fading bruise. "We struggled," she continued to recall the rest of the struggling between her and Tiffany changing a few details but still sticking with the truth. "I grabbed a bag and I left."

"Where were you those three days?"

"At a family friends two state's over. I thought they wouldn't be able to find me there."

"They?"

"The people who attacked me."

"You said Tiffany attacked you."

"She did, but she wasn't alone as I just said. Someone kicked down my door after I got free. I set of the fire alarm and that's why water was in my apartment."

"Why not just call for help?"

"Were you not just listening I told you the phone wasn't working. I just watched my room get nearly decapitated. I did the next best thing I could do by setting off the alarm knowing that it would alert for help."

"And you held off four attackers by yourself?"

"I'm stronger than I look and I don't think I like what you're implying. Instead of questioning me you should be putting this crack pot detective team to work and find the person who killed Kate and tried to kill me."

"We think we already did that." He said calmly and rationally snuffing out some of Kathleen 's anger. "The knife and bodies of Tiffany and the three other attackers were discovered in your apartment."

"So why the hell are you been questioning me for the last half hour if you already know how done it?"

"Because a few of the pieces don't add up Ms. Rose as I don't like uncertainty."

"Well then I suggest you put the down the donuts and coffee get off your ass and find those answers Sheriff because I have told you everything that I could and if I'm not under arrest I think I'm going to be going." She stood up and walked to the door.

"Ms. Rose," she stopped at the door and looked back. "I suggest you don't leave town until this investigation is over."

She opened the door and left.

"I can't believe they suspect that you had something to do with it." Kayla said incredulously and sympathetic handing her a cup of coffee. She was staying with her at her dorm until the investigation was over.

"Yeah, I know." She accepted the coffee, "me either."

"That must have been just awful," Joss said with sympathy unable to imagine going through that.

"It was," she said sorrowfully looking into her cup. "Thank you for letting me stay here." She said to Kayla. "My place is still a crime scene and even if it weren't I don't think I could go back."

She also wasn't sure if it was safe too. She doubted any more demons stuck around after she took off but she wasn't going to stay long enough to find out and made sure she was protected against any demon who might still be lurking.

"They haven't assigned me a new room mate yet so you can stay here as long as you need to."

"It'll only be for a couple days or until I'm no longer a suspect. I think I'm going to be taken a leave of absence from school and heading back home for the semester." She took a sip from her drink.

"No one would blame you. Those psycho could still be out there."

"Has anyone talked to Kate parents?"

"I saw them at the sheriff station when they were asking me questions about you." Joss said.

"I heard that they were staying in town until the investigation was over." Kayla said, "At least that's what I heard her dad tell the sheriff. Kate's mom has a sister living nearby."

"I should talk to them." She said standing, "explain everything."

"I don't think they blame you." Joss suspected that's what she was worried about. "They're just really sad and want to know why this happen."

"It was just a bunch of psychos with a knife. Why do they do anything?" She said even though she knew the truth. She left to speak to Kate's parents. She wanted to give her condolence and wasn't sure whether or not they were even going to speak to her but she knew they had questions and she had the answers.

"I know I'm probably the last person you want to see." She said when Kate aunt let her in and left her alone with her parents. She sat on the chair adjacent to the couch. "I just had to come. I know you need answers and I'm here to give the best that I can."

She begun to give her the version of the story that she gave the sheriff and by the end of it Kate's parents were in tears but she could see that they had gained some sort of closure from it. "I'm so sorry. Had I known that this was going to happen then I would have done something different. I don't know what but I would have done something. I can't begin to know what you're feeling right now but I hope knowing the truth brings you one step closer to some peace. I know it might not seem like it but knowing the truth helps. I lost my parents when I was three and I never know why this monster went after them and I may never know. I may never have that closure but you do. Or I least I hope you find it."

She stood to leave when Kate's mother spoke, "She was really fond of you. Kate, she always had something to nice to say about you. Told us how you looked out for her, have her a place to say. She thought of you like the sister she's always wanted."

"I felt the same way, and uh" she choked back tears, "I'm really going to miss her. If there's ever anything I can do. You just let me know."

Kate's mom reached out to her and grabbed her hand.

Kathleen returned to Kayla's dorm and grabbed what little she had left. After speaking with Kate's parents she thought it would be a mistake to keep putting her friends in danger so she left a note to Kate telling her that she was staying at hotel and would see her soon.

She found the nearest hotel and checked in before going to talk to her adviser to see about dropping her classes and suspending her admission but her adviser got her to reconsider dropping out completely being that she was so close to finishing and asked her if she was wanted to transfer to an accelerated program that started later in the year. Rather than holding it off she accepted it thinking that it would be better than putting off her education knowing that she could end up not completing it all together.

She also was going to need something to keep her from obsessing about John and whatever demon or monster was after him. She left after getting signed up and returned back to her hotel room where she waited for the all clear to leave. She worked on a few things that John left for her to do until she was no longer a suspect and given the okay to leave after answering a few questions. She wasted no time getting out of time and back to Bobby's after stopping by her old apartment to grab her things after it was okay to go in. She was in a hurry to get to know where she knew she would be safe to work on the lead regarding Sam and his connection with the thing that killed both their moms.

He was in his study as he usually was helping hunters when she came in.

"I expected you here days ago." He said when she walked into the study.

She sat her bag on the floor. "I ran into a little bit of trouble."

"What kind of trouble?"

"My room mate was killed by some psycho with a knife, cops suspected I did it."

"Was it a demon?"

"No, just a few college kids who saw too many flasher flicks and took their occult studies way too seriously."

"Well are you alright?"

"Physically, just a few scratches. I'm just use to their being a reason you know. Demon's, witches, vampires I get. A couple of mentally disturbed kids, there's just really no reason for that."

"The worlds filled with crazies, both of the supernatural kind and humans." He sipped out of his mug and went back to reading.

She walked into the kitchen with the leftovers that Amelia packed for her sitting all but one of the tupperware in the fridge sitting the other on the counter and grabbed a plate. The phone rung and then there was silence.

"Yeah, I'll see what I can do," she heard Bobby from his study as she placed his plate in the microwave to warm up and put on a pot of coffee. The phone rang soon after and she checked the label before answering it. "Center for disease control Frank Castle speaking." She poured the coffee into a cup and listened to the caller. She balanced the phone between her shoulder and ear carrying his plate and coffee into him.

"Yeah, I get that a lot." She replied when the cop she was talking to was surprise that it was a woman who answered the phone. "So I can see your surprise, but Frank it's actually short of Franchisca. Most people don't respond well to a woman in charge but well here and I am and to answer your question yes we were recently made aware of the problem and we were just making sure that the outbreak doesn't spread." She sat the plate down on his desk and grabbed the glass of whiskey replacing with the coffee cup. "It's standard procedure when dealing with a unknown case. We'd like to be thorough collect samples to test."

She saw a few books on his desk with different types of symbols and she got the gist of what he was looking up from them symbols and walked over to the bookshelf. "Yes I'd be happy to cover the cost of whatever gets damaged in the process." She sat the book on the desk and turned to the page he was looking for. "Of course you could reach me at this number if you have anymore questions or concerns and if I'm not in my office for any reason at all my colleague will be happy to address any concerns you might have." She looked to Bobby for confirmation of this before taking the books he had been looking at pushing his food and coffee to him.

She put the phone back on it's proper receiver and sat down in front of his books taking over for him while he ran other errands. In between fielding calls she did some light housework that was neglected due to him working as an encyclopedia of the supernatural world for a bunch of hunters. She acting as chef and housekeeper, to both him and Rumsfeld while he worked out in the yard.

He was still out there when she finished the last load of his clothes that consisted of more flannel shirts than a man not ought to have and went outside to help him with the repairs like she use to do when she was living there.

"So I decided to take a break from school." She said after working in silence for a half hour. "It's just a short one." She said when he gave a her a look of disapproval. "My advisor actually suggested it. Given everything that happened, I couldn't exactly tell him I'm no stranger to dead friends." He continued tinkering under the hood, "And it's just for a few months, I already enrolled in an accelerated program. So it shouldn't mess up my schedule. It also frees me up to help more around here while you actually do work that pays bills."

He grunted a non comentals sound and she walked back inside hearing one of the many phone lines ringing. She back to playing the role of Bobby, a part she had played a lot throughout her stay. She was starting to get cabin fever but and if it weren't for John and the boys safety she wouldn't have heded his advice. As it where, he was, she had no choice but to stay where she was and wait it out. And turned out to be months before she would hear from him again.

She was in her room working on a paper when she got the call she'd been waiting for. "John," she whispered closing her bedroom door. "Thank God I was starting to get worried. Where are you? What's going on?" She listened to his explanation of begin lured to town by a demon who was after Sam and Dean and getting attached in the hotel room by a dagas and he was hurt. After getting information on where he was she said, "Stay there, I'm on my way."


	3. Chapter 3

She grabbed a bag filling it with clothes and tossing in the computers and the articles she collected. She grabbed her keys and phone tossing her bag on her shoulder she rushed downstairs and out the front door calling out to Bobby, "I caught a case. I'll be back in a few days."

He just sat in his chair sipping his cup as the door closed having gotten use to her quick departures. She tossed her bags into the back seat and drove away as if it were her life were in danger. She didn't stop until she reached her destination making record time. She leaned back grabbing her bag out of the back seat and knocked on the door.

He answered the door his bottom shirt covered in blood and a nasty gash on his forehead and stepped inside. She sat her bag down on the table and rifled through it until she found the first aid kit she always kept with her in times such as these. She wordlessly got to work cleaning and patching him up starting with the cuts above his eye.

"What, no I told you so?" He asked after she hadn't utter a single word in the first ten minutes she arrived.

"No, it would just be a waste of time. Beside you never really listen anyway." She dabbed away the blood. "Why start now? I'm just surprise you lasted this long."

"They were in trouble."

"They're always in trouble. It doesn't give you the right to go off and be stupid." She turned her back on him and grabbed the bandages out of the box.

"You're upset." He stated the obvious.

She turned to him with a look of annoyance. "Upset is what I was on the way over here. Now I'm just pissed. You could have died."

"There's always a chance I 'could have died'. It can't stop me from doing my job."

"If you were just doing your job then this wouldn't be a problem but this isn't just some job John. This has to do with Mary and what this demon took from you. And I get it, he/she/it took something from me too. So it makes it personal but you can't let emotions get the best of you."

"You're right." He said closely watching her reaction when he continued, "But I'm the only one letting emotions get the best of me." He could see the fight deflate from her eyes and she quickly returned to patching him up.

"You're not" She said when she was done and he tossed his shirt back over his shoulder. She looked him in the eye. "But I get to be. I get to be because I'm not the one who's out there every day. I don't need to keep a level head about this. Even if I did, it's not like I can control it, so." She began cleaning up content with letting subject fall. She change the subject. "I think I found a way to track the demon that's after you." He got off the bed after button his shirt and walked over to her. "It's not perfect."

He scanned through it, "but it's the closest we've ever came. I think you actually might be onto something."

"Yeah you know I thought so I'm just not an expert with recognizing patterns like you are. Research and lures I can do," she looked over the papers that he had spread out across the table. "This is a little more complicated than that. At best I could take a guess depending on the direction and the route but he could switch direction or the pattern could change at any time. I wouldn't be able to recognize it."

"But I can," He started rearranging the papers towards the pattern.

She left him to his work and made a food run. She came back with a a fast food bag and a six pack and sat down at the table to help him map out the patterns. She took a break after a few hours to shower. He was still working at it when she came out.

She tossed the towel she used to dry her hair on the floor and walked over to him placing the takeout bag from the burger place she'd stop a gotten food from that he previously ignored in front of him. "Eat, that'll still be there later." She walked back over to the bag she had placed on the bed before going into the bathroom pulling out a pair of shorts.

"You know you never did tell me what happened with Sam. Two years of not seeing or speaking to each other, and what you just let bygones be bygones."

"Something like that."

"So what's the deal with you too anyway. Are you hard on him because of what you think could happen or because he's different? And by different I mean he's not like us."

"I raised that boy the same way I did Dean."

"Doesn't mean he's built for this kind of life. Not everybody is, Sam's another product of nature versus nurture. At least he was, before Jessie died. Now all he wants is revenge. Finally something you two have in common."

"That's about the only thing."

"No, I'm pretty sure I think can of a few other things. On top of that list would be prideful immediately followed by hardheaded and stubborn and not necessarily in that order. He's also not the one to blame for it either. Face it, you leaving him alone to fend for himself taught him how to be independent. You can't get upset that he's his own man. Unlike Dean whom seems to be just fine following whatever you say, Sam's never going to be okay with following blind orders."

"...I know."

"So why do you keep expecting him to be something we know he's not? At least he wasn't when he still had Jesse and was on his way to the normal life that he never got to have. Jessica dying could be the thing that pushes him over the edge. It's probably why it targeted her in the first place. They saw how close he was to putting that life behind him."

"Now that's all he's going to be able to think about."

Kathleen knew he was speaking from experience. He himself was unable to move on from the death of his wife and she knew he wasn't going to be able to until he killed whatever it was who did it.

She walked over to him placing her hands on the top of the chair beside him. "Then we need to give him closure. The further away from all this is the better his chances are. We don't need to just find this thing. We need a way to kill it."

"I'm working on it and I'm close."

"Anything I can do to help?"

"No, I want you as far away from this thing as possible."

"I would argue but given that state I found you in I'm inclined to agree. "

He thought she would put up a fight and was surprised when she didn't, "didn't think you'd agree so easily."

"What can I say? I don't share the Winchester Martyr jean. Plus I'd like to actually be around when we kill the son of a bitch, makes all of this worth something." She leaned over him to get a better view of what he was able to put together so far. He was hit with the scent of her shampoo as she pointed out what he had been able conclude so far. "So it looks like he starts from here and is making his way north." She glanced at him when she noticed that he wasn't looking down. "What?"

"Your hair smells different."

She was a bit taken back surprised he'd notice. "I changed Shampoos."

He turned back to the table, "that explains it."

She worked into the early hours of the morning before calling it a night and taken the queen size bed. When she woke up the next morning, he was gone. The papers were still spread out on the table but the chair was vacant.

She sat up wiping her eyes and gaining her bearings. She stretched the kinks out of her body and reached for her phone. It was after one when she walked in the bathroom to freshen up. She was rinsing her mouth out when she heard the door open and quickly spit out her mouth wash wiping her mouth she stepped out to see John walking back in with a white bag and two cups of coffee.

"Yes, caffeine, you are a lifesaver." She walked over and grabbed the foam cup from his hand take a slow sip. She walked over to the table where all the articles she had pulled up were marked over and number. "Did you stay up the whole night?"

"Yeah."

She looked it over. "Well it paid off and if we ever find out how to kill this thing at least we can track it...You can track it." She remembered her word to stay out of it and corrected herself. "And I'm going to let you do that. Try not to get yourself mauled by any more shadow demons. " She grabbed her things and left.

* * *

"I'm telling you Dean we could have taken them" Sam insisted vehemently feeling that they had a good chance of withstanding whatever was going to come their way as a result of their father pulling a bait and switch with a gun that was made for killing all kinds of supernatural creatures including the thing that killed their mom.

But Dean's opposition to that plan was a strong as Sam insistence that they could take on whatever was to come. Dean knew differently, considering they had managed to capture a skilled hunter like John Winchester. He wasn't about to take that chance.

"What we need is a plan." Dean kept his eyes ahead as he calculated their next move. Their lives, as well as their dads, depended on him making the right moves which meant he had to play it smart and not go in guns blazing. "They're probably going to want to trade him for the gun." It made the most sense to him. It was the only reason for them to capture him and not kill him when they realized that the gun was a fake. The gun was what they were after after all, not John. They could just give them the gun in exchange for John and once they were safe they would find out a way to get it back.

"Dean if that were the case why didn't they mention a trade." He knew the demons they were up against and he also knew they were leaving a trail of dead hunters in their wake all in the quest to get to them and the gun. Caleb being the latest victim. "He might be-"

"Don't" Dean warned clenching down on his jaw and fixed his brother with a hard stare before looking straight ahead. He couldn't and would even consider that. Even though he knew that it was a high probability of that being true, he wouldn't allow him nor Sam to go the. There was no way their father was dead in Dean's eyes.

Sam didn't want to believe it but he was much more willing to consider it the Dean. "Look I don't want to believe it anymore than you," he said and Dean glanced at him from his peripheral vision, "but if he is all the more reason we kill the damn thing. We still got the gun we can finish the job." He wasn't about to let the could be passing of his father stop him from him from attaining something that twenty-two years in the making.

Dean didn't quite see it the same way his brother did. "Screw the job Sam." 'The job' had fallen to the waste side for Dean. His top priority was getting John back. By whatever means necessary.

"I'm just trying to do what he would want us to do. He would want us to finish the job." Nothing was more important to John then finding and killing the demon who killed his wife, Sam knew it.

So did Dean, though he chose to ignore it. "Will you quit talking about him like he's dead already? Listen to me, everything stops until we get him back you understand me. Everything."

"How do we find him?" They didn't know anything other than where they were said to meet to trade the colt in for Meg to stop going after .

"We go to Lincoln. Go to the warehouse where he was taken." It was the next logical choice in Dean's mind to start where they were sat to met.

"You really think these Demons are going to leave a trail?"

"You're right." They were smart and Dean need it. He also knew where that they weren't going to be able to solve it on their own. "We need help."

* * *

Kathleen ignored the ringing door bell as she left John the latest in a series of messages she had left for him over the last few weeks. "I know we agreed on you keeping a low profile but it's been months and I'm starting to get worried," she heard the sound of male voices and knew she should go check it out in case Bobby needed her help, "so please when you get this call me back." She hung as she came into Bobbies study and saw that the voices that she heard meant he wasn't alone.

She also wasn't expecting to see who she saw standing there when she walked in.

"Sam," she smiled genuinely happy to see him and was also relieved to when she hugged him. He hugged her back.

"Hey Len."

She let go and turned to Dean giving him a more curter greeting then she had Sam. "Dean," she turned back to Sam. "you boys were the last people I'd expected to see back here."

"We needed Bobby's help."

She knew there was only one reason that the two of them would have darkened their doorstep again, "John."

She knew there was something wrong when she hadn't heard from him. She just didn't expect for him to have gotten himself had capture by the demons that were after them.

She walked over to and stopped next to Sam after Bobby and Dean and disappeared into the kitchen so she could speak with him to see where his head was at. "I head about what happened to Jessica. She was a sweet girl who didn't deserve that. I'm sorry."

"Yeah... me too." They lapsed in silence when a thought occurred to him, "wait how'd you hear about Jesse?"

"I'm stopped a check in on you a few month back and heard what happened. I put two and two together." She bumped shoulders with him. "What I want to know is why you didn't tell me?"

"Dean was there. Dad was missing."

"A reunion with the old man? How bad was it?"

He chuckled humorlessly, "pretty bad. So hey what was that with you and Dean?"

"You caught that huh,"

"Yeah uh," he chuckled again, "pretty hard to miss."

"You weren't the only one I checked in on." She left it at that. "I think I know something that might help." She showed him to the book shelf and pulled out a book that she thought would help him and sat it down on Bobby's desk.

"Bobby, thanks for everything," Dean said when Bobby came back in carrying two silvers flask with a cross embedded on the front of it; one filled with Holy Water, the other whiskey after filling both him and Kathleen on the situation. He was sincerely grateful for the help that Bobby was providing, "to tell you the truth, I didn't think we should come"

"Nonsense your daddy needs help," Like Dean, his main focus was making sure John was found and returned back in one peace. Whatever happened in the past no longer mattered.

"Yeah well last time we saw you, you threaten to fill him full of rock salt." Dean referred back to the month he and Sam spent with Bobby during their younger days when John dropped them off without such much as a phone call the entire time and Dean went looking for him after getting into a heated argument with Bobby. When he finally returned, John was with him and he was pissed causing an even bigger argument between John and Bobby."You cocked the gun back and everything."

"Yeah well what can I say." Bobby began seemingly unapologetic. "John just has that effect on people."

"Yeah," Dean chuckled with a slight nod and a shoulder shrug bringing the whiskey flask to his lips. "I guess he does."

"This book, I've never seen anything like it." Sam marveled over the book that he had spent the past twenty minutes thumbing through. "Does these protective circles really work?" Sam had saw that they could be use to trap a demon into one if you could lure them into one. The trick was actually getting them into one.

Dean and Bobby heard Sam's question and answered, "you get a demon into one their powerless. It's like a satanic roach motel." He sat on the edge on the desk. "I'll tell you something else. This some real crap you boys stepped into"

"Yeah?" Sam asked wondering what he meant. "How's that?"

"Normally I'd hear of three demonic possessions in a year. Four tops"

"Yeah" Dean encouraged him to continue.

"This year I heard of twenty-seven. You get what I'm saying. More and more demons are walking amongst us and you boys" he glanced at Dean and then back at Sam, "You're daddy, you're smack dab in the middle."

Rumsfeld barked alerted them they're in trouble and Kathleen walked to the window looking out bout didn't see the old hound of Bobby's car.

"Something's wrong. Rumsfeld's gone" She went for her weapons that were in the kitchen when the front door was kicked in and a blonde with a short cut stepped in effectively cutting her off from her weapons.

Sam grabbed her and pushed her behind him keeping her out of harm's way.

"No more crap okay," She hissed and Dean pulls the flask from out of his jacket pocket and starts towards her as he uncapped it but with a wave of her hands she flung him into a pile of books with her attention still on Sam. "I want the colt Sam." She started towards them. "The real colt right." She was growing impatient. "Now."

"We don't have it on us." Sam spluttered and began inching to the adjacent room pulling Bobby and Kathleen with him. "We buried it."

Meg didn't believe him and it only served to further anger her. "Didn't I say no more crap. I swear after everything I heard about you Winchesters I go to tell you I'm a little underwhelmed. First Johnnie tries to pawn off a fake gun and then he leaves the real gun with you two chuckle heads. Lackluster move. I mean did you really think I wouldn't find you.

"Actually," Dean said from behind her, "we were counting." Meg turns around to look at Dean and Dean slowly look upwards causing Meg to do the same. She sees a protective circle drawn on the ceiling. "Got ya"


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 6**

Bobby escorted the boys out of the room. "You boys better hurry up and beat it before the paramedics get her." Kathleen covers Meg body with a blanket having died after she had given them the information the needed about John's whereabouts. The exorcism was successful but the fall that she took out of the window mangled the body killing the person inside. The demon was only animating it.

"What are you going to tell them?" Kathleen stood up the moment Sam asked the question still looking down.

"You think you guys invented lying to the cops?" She turned and grabbed the key of Solomon off Bobby's desk and walked into the room with the boys stopping next to Bobby. "I'll figure something out."

"Take it," she hands the key of Solomon book to Sam, "you might needed."

He nodded his thanks.

"Thanks….for everything. Be careful alright?" Kathleen could tell Dean was was worried. Maybe it was it because of the possibility that more Demons could track them back to Bobby's or maybe it was over whatever drew more and more demons out of their holes.

But Bobby didn't want him worry about them and neither did she. They had more pressing concerns to worry about and she wasn't sure what would await them in sunrise. "You just go find your dad." Bobby told him. "And when you do, you bring him around here would you. I won't even try and shoot him this time."

Sam and Dean turn to leave and Kathleen walked them out having concerns of her own. She stood in front of Dean while he stood in front of the drivers car door. "I would ask if you boys needed back up, but I already know what you're going to say. You're going to tell me it's too dangerous," she said to Sam. "And Dean is going to tell say we don't know what you're going to find when we get there and he can't split his focus. You're going to need to be able to get in and out."

"Well your forgot one thing," Dean said, "It's something we got to do on our own."

"How could I forget when you're always there to remind me?" She traded looks with Dean knowing that he wouldn't miss the hidden meaning behind her words.

But neither did Sam, only Dean knew what she really meant but chose not to reply with words. Instead, he broke eye contact with her and got inside of the car.

Once Sam was tucked inside, she ducked into the window, "watch out for Sammie" She says to Dean as Sam gets in.

He nods and turns over the engine to the impala and it roars to life. Kathleen turns and heads back inside and gets started on dinner. The paramedics came a short while later and Kathleen listened from the kitchen as Bobby fed a couple deputies about story about how her laying in the back seat of a pickup that he'd towed in and he carried her into the house.

He said that he hadn't seen her laying in the back seat. He just hooked the truck up to the tow and towed it back. It wasn't until he was cleaning out that he noticed her. Kathleen backed up Bobby's story by telling the cops that she had helped him get her in and was the one to cover her with the blanket.

"And it didn't bother you to have a dead woman lying less than ten feet away from your kitchen?" Kathleen could see that the deputy was getting suspicious that she wasn't more freaked out about a dead body. "I see you're cooking dinner."

"I see what you're getting at but I've seen a lot of awful things in my line of work. All sorts of monsters who do all sorts of things for no other reason then they can. So I had to learn how to internalize a lot of things or I'd be no good to anyone."

"And what is that you do?"

"I'm working on my masters, abnormal psychology, so one of the requirements is an intern program. I've worked with officers such as yourself as well social services to get first hand experience. I've seen kids come in with third of fourth degree burns and sometimes the kids that come from abusive homes we can't get to in time and they don't make it. But you must know what that's like right. I'm sure you've answered a few of those calls.

Seen more death and heartache then you should. Wonder if what you're doing is really making a different? Ask yourself why do you wake up day after day put on their uniform when you don't even think you're doing any good?" She waited until she saw the look of confirmation in their body language to any her assumptions before answering, "is there anything else you'd like to know?"

"No." The officer with seniority flipped his notebook closed. "I think we got all we need." She walked back to the kitchen and the senior ranking officer turned to Bobby when he was standing on the other side of the door, "if we have anymore questions."

"You know where to find us." He shut the door but the officer caught it before it closed.

He looked towards Kathleen."She isn't seeing anybody is she?"

"No," Bobby slammed the door in his face and locked.

She looked at Bobby over her shoulder while she sat the table, "now that wasn't really nice and he wasn't cute."

"Yeah well cops don't exactly make good partners in out line of work and he better be glad I didn't shoot." She smiled and brought the stew and basket of rolls to the table. "We're out of beer."

"There should be plenty stored in your kidneys, you could try checking there." She sat down at the kitchen table and poured him a glass of winter from a picture. "In the meantime, drink water."

"Keep sassing me," he sat down at the table in front of her. "And I'll put you over my knee."

She picked up her spoon with a half smile and started eating.

* * *

"Well I think you'll be happy to know that I got more beer," she shut the front door, "I don't think you're kidney will be happy with it though." She turned to Bobby bag grocery bag in hand to see him hanging up the phone. She sat the bag down on the table. "What's wrong?

"Oh man, Dean's going to be pissed." Kathleen turned to Sam as he got out of a car that he stole to get there watching the exchange between him and Bobby.

"Look Sam, this...this just ain't worth the tow. I say we empty the trunk and sell the rest for scraps."

"No. Dean would kill me if we did that. When he gets better he's gonna want to fix this."

She didn't see how they were going to be able to fix that. "There's nothing to fix. The frames a pretzel, and the engine's ruined. There's barely any parts worth salvaging."

"Listen to me Bobby. If there's only one working part, that's enough. We're not just going to give up on…"

"You got it."

"Here, uh dad asked for you to get this stuff for him."

Kathleen leans over Bobby shoulder to look at the list.

"What would John want with this?"

She read over the list her face formed into a frown and she gritted her teeth walking away.

"You're planning to summon the damn thing here." Kathleen stormed into John's room beyond angry at what John had been planning to do. "Now. In the same building as Sam. John what the hell are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking about saving my son."

"And saving one son could cost you another...Look" She took a calming breath understanding the situation he was in. "I know Dean's hurt and this has to be a hard decision to make and it feels like choosing but summoning the demon here isn't going to end well for anybody. You're already hurt and you're down a man so why not just wait."

"Dean doesn't have time for me to wait."

"Yeah," she sighed having gotten the details from Sam, "I know, which is why we agreed that it'd be best for you to stay away from them the last time we talked after you were used as a scratching post for a demon. Or did you just conveniently forget that conversation."

"I know what we agreed on. But there was a situation that needed to be handle."

She reached down in her boot and took out something, "you mean this," she placed it on the roll away table in front of him. "Yeah, Sam filled me in on that too. I would ask if you were ever going to tell me you found it but seeing as how I had to find out from Sam I guess I know the answer already."

"You were the one who said you wanted to stay out of it. 'I'd rather be alive when we finally kill the son of the bitch'. Those were your exact words to me. I was just respecting your wishes."

She laughed humorlessly, "Oh so now you listen to me. Where was all that respect when you promised me to stay away from Sam? Or when you said that we were in this together, because I thought we were partners in this John. It's what you said when you first came to me after having suspecting about Sam."

"I'm trying to keep you out of all this to keep you safe."

"You said that the exact same thing about trying to protect Sam and Dean _yet here we are_ with Dean down the hall fighting for his life and Sam is running around here like a chicken with his head cut off trying to find supplies for you to summon a demon that apparently has plans for him. So if you want to protect me I suggest you find another way to do it."

John was saved from a reply but wasn't saved from the conversation when Sam in with a duffel bag clearly upset with his father too. "Did you really think I wouldn't find out?"

Kathleen couldn't sure he was referring to. There would be a number of things he was angry about. He could be angry about what he could have possibly heard when he walked on what his father planned on doing with the ingredients she suppose were in the bag he just slammed down.

John wouldn't cope to anything and instead asked, "What are you talking about?."

"That stuff from Bobby," Kathleen stepped out of the way walking over to the window to let John duke it out with Sam. "You don't use it to ward off demons. You use it to summon one. You're planning on bringing the demon here, aren't you? Having some stupid macho showdown?!"

John didn't bother denying what Sam had obviously know was the truth and instead said, "I have a plan Sam.

"That's exactly my point!" Sam was livid. "Dean is dying and you have a plan! You know what you care more about killing this demon then you do saving your own son"

"Don't tell me how to feel?" John said not as calm as he was before. "I'm doing this for Dean."

"How? You don't care about anybody but yourself it's the same old selfish obsession"

"You know, it's funny I thought it was your obsession too. This demon killed your mother killed your girlfriend you begged me to be apart of this hunt. Now if you would have killed that damn thing when you had a chance none of this would be happening."

Kathleen looked at the new information having obviously not being told everything like she thought.

"It's was possessing you dad!" She turned a sharp eye on him. Now that's something she hadn't known either. "I would have killed you too."

"Yeah and your brother would be awake right now."

"Go to hell."

"I never should have taking you along in the first place I knew it was a mistake. I was wrong-."

"Hey!" She looked between John and Sam. "Now is not the time for this."

The glass on the table fell off spilling the water inside all over the floor and causing the arguing to stop. John and Sam looked at each other before looking back at the mess.

A flurry of nurses passed by the room turning their attention to them as they passed. "Something's going on out there" John indicated to Sam with a nod that he wanted him to go find out what was happening and for the first time he obeyed without question. "Kathleen," he stopped her from leaving out as she prepared to follow Sam wanting to address what she just heard.

But she didn't want to talk about it just then, "I'm going to check on Dean." She left the room before he could say anything else too furious with John to stay. A lot of what was said she knew about but others like John being possessed by the demon she didn't. It was clear to her that he had no regard for his own life if he wanted Sam to kill the demon while it was possessing him.

She knew that it was an obsession for him but she had the slimmest of hope that he held a special regard for his own life. Apparently she had been wrong.

* * *

"You're quiet."

Kathleen was back in John room after watching nurses and a doctor try to resuscitate Dean. It took a few tries but they were able to once again stabilize him though he was still in critical condition.

"Just thinking," Sam left to run some kind of errand after declaring to having psychic abilities she didn't even knew he had. John had failed to mentioned to her also.

She stood had stood outside of Dean's room listening to the monitors beeped while a doctor and some nurses work to resuscitate him next to Sam who was tearful at the time thinking the worse.

"All clear," she listened to the nurse say and watched them stand back as the nurses used the defibrillator.

"Still no pulse," the same nurse responded when it failed to work and Sam begin to fidget as tears still gathered in his eyes and he grabbed his hand in comfort for not him but herself as well as they watch the hospital's staff try to revive Dean.

"Okay, let's go again. 360"

"Charging," Kathleen jumped as they used the paddle again reflexes causing her to tighten her hold on Sam's hand as said a "Come on Dean, breath," to herself and felt immense relief when she heard the nurse say,

"We have a pulse," the nurse declares, "we're back in sinus rhythm."

She turned and walked back over to John taken a seat feeling emotionally drained.

"He's going to be okay."

"Is he? And even if he is this isn't over. This demon is still going to be after you. You're never going to be safe until this thing is dead," Which meant she was never going to get any moment of peace until it was, "Sam's never going to be safe. It's time to end this. For good."

She studied his face and saw something flash through his eyes. "That's not what you're going to use the gun for is it. You're going to use it to save Dean. You're going to give away the only thing that guarantees that Sam's going to be safe."

"If I don't, Dean dies."

She shook her head knowing that he won't be able to talk him out of it cause there was no other way to save him from what they were saying, "fine, what do you want me to do."

She found Sam in Dean's room sitting with his leg crossed on the floor with a spirit board in front of him. "Are you really trying to contact Dean with that thing?" It was the only explanation she could think of for why he would have gone out a brought a spirit board.

"It was worth a shot, and it seemed to be working." She stepped up next to him with. "So far I know that he's on a hunt." Her attention was on the board as she waited for the the pointer to move and when it did she bend down beside Sam and watched it spell out the word R.E.A.P.E.R.

"A reaper. Dean. Is it after you?"

The pointer slid to the word yes. Kathleen looked at Dean laying on the bed.

"Sam, if that's true and a reaper is really after Dean then it's here naturally and there's no way to kill it. Dean's screwed."

"No, no, no, no, um, there's gotta be a way" He stands and starts to pace. "Dad'll know what to do."

He left and she followed hoping that John would have returned by the time they had gotten there but when they reached his room his bed was empty. That didn't deter Sam from his initial mission. Since John wasn't there he grabbed his journal and left.

Kathleen took a seat in the chair and decided to wait for him there since he would have to pass his room to get to Deans and she would be able to talk to him first. She hadn't expected it to have taken so long as grew restless. Unable to sit any longer, she stood up stretching and left his room and made her way down to the coffee machine to walk out the kinks she had acquired from falling asleep in the chair while she waited for John's return. On the return back she ran into Sam who was getting coffee for John.

He filled her in on Dean's miraculous recovery and she skillfully pretended as if she didn't know how that could have happened but she didn't have to pretend that she was relieved that everything worked out the way that it was suppose.

"Crazy thing is, he doesn't remember anything. Not the reaper, or how he ditched it, none of it."

"Yeah well I'm just thankful he did. No matter how that happen," she walked so she could check in on Dean but saw John first first and started towards him. The look he gave her as she did almost gave her pause but she kept moving in his direction.

"Have to admit, I had my doubts about your plan but I ran into Sam and he said Dean's going to be okay. So I am sorry for doubting you. I would say it won't happen again but we both know that's a lie."

"Yeah," he smiled slightly. "It is. Then again I could always count on you to tell me like it is. Even when I was being a stubborn pain in the ass you never let me down. And the way you're always looking out for me and the boys, and I'm counting on that now."

"Yeah you can." She said a little skeptical about where he was going.

"I Know I made you grow up too fast. The things that I confided in I should've have done. I should have left you out of it. It's what you're mom and dad wanted for you. For you to live a normal life. I never should have dragged into all of this."

"You didn't drag me into anything I was born into this. You, Sam, Dean, Bobby, you're family. I'd do almost anything for you."

"I know. That's why I know you're looking after them while I'm gone."

"You plan on going to hiding again?"

"No. Things didn't go as I planned."

"I don't understand. Dean's woke. He's okay. So what didn't go the way you planned?"

"He wanted more than gun."

"What else do you have that he could want other than Sam. The only thing I could think of is…" she looked at him when it dawned on her. "Tell me you didn't."

"I couldn't let him die."

"But now you are. H-how do you think that's going to make Dean feel when he realizes what you did? Did you even once think about the rest of us before making a decision like this. Did you think about the rest of us? What am I going to do without you?"

He pulled her into his arms and she clung on the the back of his shirt. "You're going to be fine."

They stood there embraced in each other's arms until they had let go which they did reluctantly. He gave her a teary eyed smile and stepped back given her space to walk away. He didn't want her to watch what happened next and she was even less eager to watch. She gave him one final look before walking away.

She didn't enter the room again until she saw Sam helping Dean down to the room.

A nurse standing by the stopped them before they could go inside, "You three have to wait outside.

"No, no, no that's our dad. That's our dad." Dean said and she allowed them to wait outside the door.

"Okay let's try again and ample that for me please" Kathleen heard the doctor say as one nurse did chest compression and another squeezed air into his face mask.

For two minutes they tried to get his heart to start until the doctors called for them to stop and a nurse checked his neck for pulse.

"Still no pulse," She called and Kathleen stood in between the Winchester boys silently willing and praying for his heart to start again while Dean verbally willed it but after another two seconds the doctor had no choice but to call.

"Okay that it's everybody I'll call it," he said and Kathleen buried her face in Sam's chest and he wrapped a protective arm around her as tears fell. "Time of death, 10:41 am."


End file.
